Cayetano should yield to teachers' demand

It's very sad that the governor and Davis Yogi are trying to weasel out of signing the best contract the teachers ever had. They are blaming the teachers when all they have to do is look in the mirror to see who is at fault. This whole mess is due to the arrogance, inexperience and sloppiness of Yogi and the governor.

Governor Cayetano should have quit while he was ahead. As I recall he was so adamant about not making the teachers' contract retroactive that he caused the previous impasse. Only when he listened to an experienced negotiator, Gary Rodrigues, who came up with the idea of the bonus provision, did the teachers accept the contract. The teachers wanted to be compensated for the two years that Cayetano and his inexperienced crew of negotiators left them hanging in limbo, and also stole from them by not giving them a timely contract, while he and his group collected their cushy salaries and raises.

The hard-working teachers who mold the character of our leaders of tomorrow deserve everything they are asking for and them some. Cayetano has been in his ivory tower too long. Education is one of the most important legacies we must give the children of Hawaii.

The governor should just bite the bullet, find the money and quit making excuses. We are talking about trust, good faith and character. He made a mistake; the right thing to do is accept it, rectify it and move forward.

The teachers have an excellent opportunity to teach their students a good example of the antithesis of good role models in the governor and Davis Yogi.

Edith Ellis

Good deed should have surpassed reward

With regard to the family that reluctantly returned Maizie the dog and collected a $1,000 reward (Star-Bulletin, Aug 2): The adults in that family should avail themselves of human-decency counseling. I would think returning such an important animal would be foremost on their minds, and taking the reward would be the last.

At least Maizie is back where she belongs, in good health and spirits, providing an invaluable service to the sick and infirm. A better calling does not exist.

Sean Ross

[Quotables] "I believe that the use of canoe districts is unfair, unpopular, unworkable, unconstitutional and, worst of all, unnecessary." Jim Hall, Member of the Reapportionment Advisory Council, on the increase in the number of awkwardly designed, multi-island districts in the proposed redistricting plan. "This is the furthest from the classic bank robber profile I have ever seen." Andrew Black, FBI spokesman, on Rick Lee Davis, an air traffic controller at San Francisco International Airport who robbed nine banks to get the money to fly his children to and from Hawaii to visit him and to pay child support. Davis worked in Hawaii before moving to California.

Don't blame hunters for sign damage

The Star-Bulletin is obviously pushing an anti-hunting and anti-firearm agenda ("No more dodging bullets on the Pali," Aug. 6).

The lands on both sides of the Pali Highway are state archery-only hunting areas where firearms are illegal.

Wild pigs are not indigenous and cause major damage to the land and the watershed. They also are dangerous -- just ask the woman in Punaluu who was attacked recently by a wild pig. Hunters perform a service by keeping the wild pig population down, something state eradication methods have failed to do. It is the best way to keep them under control, like in the old Hawaii days.

It is true that some vandals do damage state signs, and that's illegal. But don't blame the hunters.

Louis Robinson

Eliminating income tax is possible

This is a response to the July 29 article concerning the feelings of Hawaii's residents regarding the inadequate federal tax rebates. If we were to eliminate all the federal government programs that are not specifically delegated by the U.S. Constitution, then the constitutional federal programs -- mainly national defense and the federal courts -- could operate on an annual budget of $100 billion. This means the federal government will be so streamlined there will be no need for federal income taxes. The excise taxes and tariffs that are already collected bring in more than $100 billion and can easily pay for those programs.

If all spending cuts are combined into a single package that includes the total repeal of the federal income tax, people will see that they save much more by eliminating taxes than they will lose by eliminating subsidies. Would you be willing to give up your favorite federal program if it means never paying income taxes again?

Tom Paull
Kailua

---

Letter guidelines The Star-Bulletin welcomes letters that are crisp and to the point on issues of public interest. The Star-Bulletin reserves the right to edit letters for clarity and length. Please direct comments to the issues; personal attacks will not be published. Letters must be signed, must include a mailing address and daytime telephone number. Letter form: Online form, click here E-mail: letters@starbulletin.com Fax: (808) 529-4750 Mail: Letters to the Editor, Honolulu Star-Bulletin 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, Hawaii 96813